The Umbrella

Invest in good umbrella now: Here are recommendations of men umbrella that are both stylish and sturdy.

4 Dec 2013

Driving in the rain on my way back from Stylo Mercedes Benz Fashion Week yesterday, I was reminiscing the rainy days back in the high school era. As an underage kid who lived quite far away from the campus, I had to do quite a lot of walking and traveling.

One of the most horrid memory during those school days has to be the after-class rainy disaster – I had to brave through the evening shower (or thunderstorm on certain days) armed with my pewny little foldable umbrella. The mission: to reach the 2km-away commuter train station in one dry piece.

I thought I could look like this.

In reality.

Thanks to the cars that never slowed down when hitting the puddle. I couldn’t decide whether I should hold my umbrella up to shelter from the rain, or down to counter the splash. The accompanying wind contributed to quite a number of inverted umbrella in my life.

The thing is, I have been hating my foldable umbrella for quite some time. Not because it didn’t survive under the stress (I remember changing them quite frequently though), it was how most young boys would see the act of using an umbrella: it’s sissy and so uncool.

“Umbrellas are for girls.”

To an awkward young boy hitting puberty, somehow going without an umbrella looking like a red-blooded young man seems more legit than having a sinus congestion. (Was it just me?) And I thought the fragile foldable umbrella wasn’t a very stylish thing. A full-sized umbrella was a little troublesome to carry.

As I grew older, I learned that full-sized umbrella was originally a gentleman’s accessory back in the history. They can be fashionable. In the menswear world, high-end real umbrellas are favoured like the goodyear welted shoes, and it’s not uncommon to send or receive them as gifts. (Now that’s one gift idea. Read also: The Christmas Gift Shopping List: 20 Ideas)

By theparisreview.org

By apoormansmillions.com

So I’ve since been sticking with the idea of classical full-sized umbrella. I especially love the minimalistic one-colour umbrellas. (I have one in Gold!) I’ve always wanted one in black – chic, simple and cool.

You can toss them around, use them as walking sticks, or turn them into deadly weapons (oh I secretly wanting to learn this) whilst keeping your cool.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PuJzlgD4YzE

Now that’s the really good umbrella I’m talking about. (On a side note, I actually have a similar cheongsam. Hmm.)

So is it crazy for me to want to invest in a well-made umbrella that protect me from the liquid elements? No (ok maybe not too expensive). We shall let them into our life, and these stylish umbrella definitely last so much longer, and won’t send you Mary-Poppins away easily:

Style Inspiration: Camouflage. For prints like floral and camouflage, I guess they have entered Menswear Classics Hall of Fame. The trend might fade away one day, but it has become a timeless style we can embrace from time to time.